A construction technique of increasing importance is the use of modular components. Among their advantages are generally lower production and handling costs. Among these modular components, the most familiar is the composite flat panel. But in recent time, manufacturers have produced and marketed several type of curved-shape components. Typical of structures assembled from such modules are hemisphere domes, half-cylinder buildings such as so-called quonset huts, and hyperbolic paraboloid roof systems.
Each of these basic building shapes offers specific advantages and limitations. Hemispheres and half-cylinders offer the advantage of self-support; interior space can be unobstructed. But neither shape can be easily extended or varied by the simple addition of a module. A half-cylinder can only be extended in length. A hemisphere cannot be extended or varied at all by simple addition of a module. A hyperbolic paraboloid roof, on the other hand, can be extended without violation of module, but does not self-support; interior space is ordinarily obstructed by columns.
On a few occasions, single large hyperbolic paraboloids have been constructed in a self-support fashion with two opposite corners in ground contact. But the compound curve of a hyperbolic paraboloid in such applications is difficult to construct. More importantly, a hyperbolic paraboloid of practical size wastes space at the ground corners and, because of its saddle shape, deprives headroom at the center. The only way to enlarge these spaces is to enlarge the structure itself and, as a result, to increase its difficulty of construction.
As indicated, these above-discussed building configurations, modular or not, serve some purposes at the cost of others. They provide architects and builders with only limited means for architectural variation.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a modular building system which is economical, which is easy to construct, which can be varied or extended in any direction by the simple addition of basic modules, which, in any configuration, offers unobstructed interior space and consequently unlimited opportunity for interior design. The present invention provides just such a modular building system.